How close are we to the violent persecution of Christians?

By Richard Reeb

Monday

Apr 9, 2018 at 2:55 PMApr 11, 2018 at 9:03 AM

Genuine hatred is polluting our social and political air these days. But it’s not coming from what failed presidential candidate Hillary Clinton referred chillingly to as the “deplorables,” an all-purpose slur designed to stigmatize millions of people who voted for Donald Trump. Rather it is the contribution of the self-styled exemplars of “tolerance,” a clever face designed to deceive everyone, including (as it happens) themselves.

Self-deception is as old as the human race, a striking example of which is portrayed in the Garden of Eden. Of course, the mere mention of that Biblical account is enough to set off plenty of anger at those who bring it up. Never mind that the Father of our country, George Washington, pointedly reminded us that “morality cannot prevail in the absence of religion.”

In a typical week, we see letters to the editor by those who toss around terms like “hateful,” “righteous Christians,” and “right wing extremists” to label their critics without any attempt at proof, but nonetheless they are “angered” and pronounce “shame” on the Daily Press’s decision for publishing their letters.

A frequent contributor is hung up on the term “mean” to describe what he calls the “crackpot right,” doubling as “scalawags” who are “unrealistic.” He even warns of “mobs” coming to their houses (who, after all, are “poor and less fortunate”), a fate that the “mean” people apparently deserve.

The question I’m raising is whether this violent speech soon will be followed by violent actions. I am no prophet but I am ever watchful of threats to life and liberty. The Left’s agitated speech points to its inner turmoil over the speech of the Right, but they are hard-pressed to find violence among all those law-abiding people.

The question turns on just how bad so-called “hateful letters,” “righteous Christians,” and “right wing extremists” are. Are they actually a threat to the political health of our republic? Are there “crackpots,” “scalawags,” and (heaven forfend) “unrealistic” people bent on destroying the United States Constitution? Not by mere words, mind you, but by their actions?

In reality, this “threat” from the Right is a phantom. “Righteous Christians” are not setting off bombs, driving their vehicles into people or shooting up nightclubs and workplaces. But the longer they are smeared as if they do (or are about to do) such things, it is only a matter of time until the supposedly “realistic” people do their “duty” and give the “haters” what they’ve got coming.

It is indeed self-deception to malign millions of people when there are no grounds for it, particularly if those doing the maligning cling to the banner of “tolerance,” a trait they deny is possible for Christians and their “right-wing” co-conspirators.

On the legal front, Christians have been forbidden to encourage prayer in school or to teach the Bible there seriously, and more recently to remain silent while the war on natural human sexuality is waged, even to the point of “educators” instructing young children in the advantage of “safe sex,” all while enthusiasts of this trend tell Christians to shut up or even “change their religious beliefs” (Hillary Clinton).

The earliest Christians, of course, experienced severe persecution at the hands of Jewish and Roman authorities and mobs. We were reminded in the film “Paul, Apostle of Christ” that the Emperor Nero set Rome on fire and blamed it on the Roman Christians, many of whom subsequently were unjustly killed. They lived an underground existence in the catacombs beneath the city, torn between escaping their sure fate or staying behind to minister to their fellow citizens. Are we there yet?

At my most recent high school reunion, I got into a conversation with a classmate who thought me strange for saying that radical Islam was the greatest threat to our country. So I asked him what he thought was the greatest threat. That was easy for him: Christians who insist on foisting their archaic views on people. It did not help to point out that Christians mainly share the gospel and set an example, lacking much in the way of political power.

Of course, there are hypocrites, who are found everywhere, but that fact alone does not discredit a religion or a political party. What counts are actions, which often proceed directly from words.

It is remarkable that so many people are outraged at their fellow citizens for continuing to advocate and practice Biblical morality, who are denounced as “hateful” and “shameful.” It means that the detractors of the Bible now have the political clout to begin (for them) the necessary work of getting rid of the faithful and their influence so that the movement to the “brave new world” of guilt-free living can proceed without obstruction.

Richard Reeb taught political science, philosophy and journalism at Barstow Community College from 1970 to 2003. He is the author of "Taking Journalism Seriously: 'Objectivity' as a Partisan Cause" (University Press of America, 1999). He can be contacted at rhreeb@verizon.net

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